05/29/2026
As I’m getting ready to go traveling again, I keep thinking back to last summer, when I was lucky enough to experience passing through the Panama Canal in person. It’s one of those places that’s difficult to fully grasp until you see it for yourself — the scale, the stillness, the movement, all existing together at once.
One of the most fascinating moments was watching a massive ship move through the locks right beside us. Over the course of several photos, you can actually see the ship being lifted step by step as the water levels change around it.
Seeing it in person gives you an entirely different appreciation for the scale of the canal and the ingenuity behind it. The entire system was built to move enormous ships safely and efficiently across what was once solid land — not through brute force, but through careful engineering, patience, and precision.
I was also struck by the holding basin, this enormous body of water where ships sometimes wait for days before passing through the locks. Hundreds of millions of dollars in cargo, simply waiting their turn.
It reminded me of something we talk about often at the Happiness Club: meaningful progress usually happens gradually. Not in one giant leap, but through consistent, measured steps that eventually carry you somewhere remarkable.
The ships aren’t rushed through the canal. They move level by level — and somehow that feels like a lesson worth paying attention to.
